The Festival of the Mirror
by LightWorldMidna
Summary: "Hyrule's 'Festival of the Mirror' was only created to console the Hero of Twilight. But where is he now! This is the real world, the Mirror of Twilight will never be repaired!" Many generations after the lifetime of the mysterious Hero, the Mirror is repaired. This generation's Princess Zelda doesn't believe in fairy-tales, but what if one happens before her very eyes?
1. Chapter 1

**It's me again! I've started yet another story. This one won't be as long as some of my other fics. I just came up with this idea one day and decided I should write it. This first chapter is supposed to be short and confusing, but don't worry, everything will be explained later.**

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I sat at my desk, history book open before me. I didn't want to read - I stared out the window instead. She sky was a beautiful combination of orange and pink as the sun set.

"Princess," An attendant stood at the door. I tucked an unruly curl of hair behind my ear as I turned to look at him. "Dinner is being served."

I nodded, turning back to the window. "I'll be right with you." I listened to his footsteps retreating as I placed my elbows on the desk, laced my fingers together and rested my chin on my hands. I never liked to miss a sunset. Especially not tonight. But should I be late again tonight, my grandfather, the King of Hyrule, would not be very impressed. Especially since, as he was growing very old and I was his only living relative, I was taking his place tomorrow in the Festival of the Mirror. He seemed to continuously forget that I wasn't a child anymore and like to take away my responsibility if I didn't behave like a princess.

He also seemed to forget that now, at 24 years old, I no longer believed in fairy-tales. I didn't enjoy the Festival of the Mirror. Even though I believed it's origins, as fantastical as they were, I didn't believe in the miracle that he wished for. With a sigh, I pushed my chair back and stood up, walking to the door.

"Maybe this will be the year the Mirror will be completed!" He would say. I stopped at the door and looked back at the shard of the Mirror of Twilight that I had inherited. I had never taken my piece to the Festival - I was a mix of emotions over it. I wanted the mirror to be completed, but I would worry about why it was destroyed in the first place. I sighed and shook my head, and hurried away to the dining hall.


	2. Chapter 2

I sat down at the table just in time for my grandfather to walk in. He nodded at the staff who welcomed him in, and then took his seat opposite me. "Zelda," He greeted. "How are you?"

I sighed and looked at my lap. _Just be polite!_ "I am fine, thank you."

He chuckled. "You sound rather cold. Is something bothering you?"

I shook my head, but when I saw him continuing to stare at me, I shrugged. "I'm not really looking forward to tomorrow."

"Is it just the speaking in public? Or is it something else?"

I sighed again, clenching my hands into fists under the table. "Grandfather, you know I don't approve of the Festival of the Mirror."

"It is tradition, Zelda. You should pay more respect to the great Zeldas who went before you. And..." He paused and gave me a know-it-all smile. "Maybe this year the Mirror will finally be completed!"

I bit back a sharp retort and thanked the waiting staff as they placed my meal before me. When we had both been served, I began to eat. He watched me, not touching his food.

"Whether you approve of the Festival or not doesn't matter, Zelda. As a Princess, you should be preparing to be there for your people." I barely looked up from my food. "Hyrule's tradition is rich. You shouldn't just dismiss it. It could make the people angry." There was a long silence, broken only by the distant sounds of the kitchen and the sounds of my eating. "And the Goddesses." He added quietly before beginning his meal.

I lowered my cutlery and glowered at him. "It's not the tradition I disapprove of. It's your insistence that life is a fairy-tale. I plan to hold true to all of Hyrule's religions and traditions. But I don't believe they are all going to cause a miracle."

He looked at me as he finished chewing. "You are still bitter about the Goddesses taking your parents, aren't you?"

I snorted and turned my attention back to my food. "This isn't about my parents. I did want a miracle then, but the Goddesses didn't give me one. But did I need it? Evidentially not. I believe they only give miracles when we Hylians need them. And tell me, what exactly do we gain from the Mirror being repaired?"

"I don't know." He replied. "Knowledge? Power? History? But have you ever considered that maybe, a miracle isn't needed for all of the pieces of the Mirror to come together this year?" Before I had chance to reply, he quickly changed the subject. "The older I get, it seems, the more we argue."

I swallowed hard. I hated it when he mentioned how old he was. It reminded me that his days were numbered. "That's because you keep coming up with ridiculous ideas."

"Is it so bad," He whispered. "That I wish to see the Mirror if Twilight completed in my lifetime? That I wish to see the fabled Twili with my own eyes?"

_No, it's not wrong._ I tightened my grip on my cutlery. "I... I don't want to see you disappointed."

We ate in silence for a long time. I had nearly finished my meal when he spoke again. "You're taking my place at the Festival of the Mirror tomorrow, aren't you? Will you ensure that it's completed, for me?"

"I can't make it happen." I replied bitterly.

"Will you pray to the Goddesses, then? For me?"

"Why don't you?"

"How about you pray for the Hero of Twilight, then?"

"He's dead."

"He will smile upon you from his place with the Goddesses, then."

I slammed my hands on the table and stood up. "Hyrule's 'Festival of the Mirror' was only created to console the Hero of Twilight. But where is he now?! He's long gone, grandfather! There is no reason, nor a way, for us to fix the Mirror! It is a waste of your prayers. This is the real world, the Mirror of Twilight will never be repaired!" I shouted. I glared at my grandfather across the table. I took my napkin, wiped my mouth and dropped it onto the table. "I will be returning to my room now. Thank you for the company." I spat at him, turning and walking away. One of the waiting staff hastily opened the door for me. I nodded at him and quietly gave my thanks for the meal.

_What if the Mirror was destroyed for a good reason, and when we fix it, we unleash hell upon Hyrule?_


	3. Chapter 3

**It's been a long time... Anyway, here we go; next chapter :D**

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I sat in silence in my chair, staring out of the window while the attendants bustled around me, messing with my hair, my dress, make-up. I just sat nervously playing with my fingers in my lap.

"Cheer up, Zelda!" One of them laid a hand on mine. I looked up to see Impa, the rather large but cheerful middle aged woman who had been my attendant since I was young. She was like a mother to me, and appropriately named after one of the famous Sheikah tribe.

I gave her a weak smile. "I'm sorry, Impa. I just... I sometimes wonder if I am the only Hylian who is against the Festival of the Mirror. I simply cannot believe nothing bad will come of the Mirror being repaired, after all, it must have been destroyed for a reason." I lowered my gaze to my hands.

Impa straightened up, planting her hands on her hips and smiling proudly at me. "You are wise beyond your years, princess..." She made her way over to the window, and motioned out at the people below. I stood up and looked at the people in the central square of Hyrule Castle Town. "Now, it is not the job of a princess to stop the people from doing anything that could have consequences. It is the job of a princess to understand the consequences of any decisions the people may make and to be able to aid the people in any situations that follow."

I felt a familiar tug of affection when I looked at the people below, but it was heavily weighted by the responsibility I held to keep them safe. "But I can't let the Mirror be completed, knowing that it may lead to a war between my people and the beings who exist on the other side of that Mirror."

"There," She chuckled, "You are considering the worst possible consequence. But on the opposite end of the scale, how do you know that stopping the Mirror from being completed will not lead to civil war between your people?"

I bit my lip. After a long pause for thought, I sighed and returned to my chair. "Why is everyone speaking as if the Mirror will finally be completed, this year of all years?"

She gave me an affectionate smile coupled with a light-hearted laugh. "Every year, Zelda. Every year. The people always get excited about this." She looked at the clock. "It's almost time now. Do you wish to say goodbye to your grandfather first?"

I nodded, stood up and walked towards the door. I expected Impa to follow behind me, but I looked back and she simply stood there, smiling at me. "What is it?"

She smiled and shook her head. "It's nothing, really... You just look so... You look almost exactly like the Princess Zelda of the Twilight Era as she is illustrated in your family portraits, or in history books."

Feeling like I was getting a headache, I gave her a smile before looking down at myself and readjusting my dress. "That's the point, isn't it?"

She shook her head. "That's not what I mean." She looked away. "You should go now, if you want to see your grandfather first."

I nodded, and now assuming she was going to stay with the other attendants, I turned to leave.

"Wait!" She hurried over to the stand where I kept my own shard of the Mirror. "Aren't you going to take this?"

The shard had been passed down for many generations, and the story passed with it was that the Hero of Twilight had painstakingly gathered those shards together, and on the day he disappeared, he gave them to Princess Zelda. I wasn't sure whether I believed it or not, but even so, it was a family heirloom. "No, I won't. I don't believe that it'll be completed this year, and if it's not, I'd still like to keep that in my possession. Besides, the Mirror isn't assembled until midnight. Should the Mirror be completed, I will have a chance to return to the Castle before then."

Impa nodded. "Very well then." I hesitated, looking back at the Mirror shard before leaving. "Go on, away with you!" She shooed me, snapping me out of my daze and sending me with a smile out of the room and towards my grandfather's rooms.

As I left the room, I felt a faint stirring of hope inside me but I pushed it down. I paused for a moment, again pondering if I wanted to complete the Mirror or not. As I felt nervousness and excitement bubbling into my throat, I shook the hair back from my face and hurried down the corridor.

_Maybe, I just don't want to admit that the child inside me still wishes I could live a fairy-tale..._


End file.
